Examine each room in the home for potential fall hazards. Look for floorboards that stick up, cords that may present a tripping hazard and loose stairway handrails.

Increase lighting in dark areas and place nightlights in hallways, bedrooms, bathrooms and on stairways.

Wipe up spills on slippery surfaces immediately.

Poisoning

The second largest cause of deadly accidents in the home is poisoning. In fact, according to USNews.com, it is the leading cause of home injury deaths for the middle-aged and young adults.

And, the leading causes of home poisonings include the unsafe storage of medications and the inadvertent and improper mixing of drugs.

“It’s kind of the Heath Ledger scenario, where people are perhaps on a prescription drug, or maybe more than one, and then they get a cold and they take a decongestant, and then maybe they add a drink to that,” the Home Safety Council’s Meri-K Appy tells USNews.com’s Luke Mullins.

Actor Heath Ledger, who suffered from insomnia and the common cold, died of combined drug intoxication.

Reduce the risk of poisoning in the home by:

Calling the Poison Help Hotline at 800-222-1222, before taking more than one prescription or over-the- counter remedy, or mixing prescription and OTC drugs. The hotline is staffed at all times and they can council you about specific combinations of medicines.

Placing the Poison Help Hotline number next to the telephone to use in emergencies.